Sunday, December 30, 2007
Nicolas Sarkozy certainly seems to be a different type than Chirac: French president severs ties with Syria until further notice
French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Sunday that his country will hold no more discussions with Syria until Damascus shows its willingness to let Lebanon elect a new president.
Lebanon's Western-backed government and pro-Syrian opposition have been unable to overcome their disagreements to follow through with the election, and many Western countries have accused Damascus of interfering in the process - a claim Syria denies.
"I will not have any more contact with the Syrians until... we have received proof of Syria's intention to let Lebanon designate a president of consensus," said Sarkozy at a press conference in Cairo after meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
France, Lebanon's former colonial ruler, has led the international effort to mediate between feuding Lebanese politicians and has consistently implored the Syrians to cooperate.
The French president spoke with Syrian President Bashar Assad as recently as the beginning of December to urge him to "facilitate" the election in Lebanon. Sarkozy sent his chief of staff, Claude Gueant, to Damascus in early November, and Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner met his Syrian counterpart Walid al-Moallem earlier that month on the sidelines of an Iraq conference in Turkey.
"France has taken the responsibility of talking with Syria," said Sarkozy. "One must recognize today that we cannot wait any longer, Syria must stop talking and now must act."...
Meanwhile, what the hell is Arlen Specter up to?: U.S. Senator says Syria's Assad is ready for peace with Israel
Syrian President Bashar Assad is ready for peace with Israel, an influential U.S. Senator said Sunday after talks with the Syrian leader.
Senator Arlen Specter said the political atmosphere in both Syria and Israel was different now and that the time was positive for resuming peace talks between the two countries, halted since 2000.
"We had a very productive meeting with Assad," Specter, a Republican from Pennsylvania, told The Associated Press after talks with the Syrian leader in Damascus.
He added that he got the impression after the meeting with Assad that the time was "very positive for productive talks between Israel and Syria."
"There is a sense that he (Assad) is ready and the Syrian public opinion is ready (for peace)," Specter said. The meeting with Assad that was also attended by Rep. Patrick Kennedy, a Rhode Island Democrat...
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